Ucas application

I’m looking forward to study architecture however my predictions are BBB and the universities i want to apply for want AAB or AAA should i still apply?

also i’m thinking of apply for universities that want ABB should i also apply?

Reply 1

mesub

Volunteer Team, Clearing and Applications Advisor

22

Original post by alevelstudent743

I’m looking forward to study architecture however my predictions are BBB and the universities i want to apply for want AAB or AAA should i still apply?

also i’m thinking of apply for universities that want ABB should i also apply?

ABB would be okay as an aspirational choice. Anything beyond that would be more risk than it's worth. You may need to manage your expectations for the unis you want to apply to.

Reply 2

spectrum84

Universities Forum Helper

19

Original post by alevelstudent743

I’m looking forward to study architecture however my predictions are BBB and the universities i want to apply for want AAB or AAA should i still apply?

also i’m thinking of apply for universities that want ABB should i also apply?

It depends on how strict the university will be with those guidelines. If you can, speak to your teachers to see if you can maybe take a mock test or something to boost those predicted grades

Reply 3

McGinger

20

Any Uni asking AAA is competitive. And they are asking for high grades because that is what they want,
Unless you are eligible for any sort of contextual offer, then being 3 grades below will almost certainly be a rejection

Reply 4

itsablandlife

11

I would take some time to reconsider and perhaps try to look more at universities in the range of your predicted grades just to make sure that you don't avoid disappointment in the future. I'm sure there are some universities who may offer architecture or a similar degree with the grades you are predicted. In my experience, the best way to go about it is to pick 3 universities that are in your predicted grade range, one that is above what you're expected in case you do better than predicted, and then one insurance one that offers lower than your predicted grades. Then, you're pretty much covered no matter what happens, if you get me. I understand you might want to look at some of the top unis or ones that look impressive to you, however it's always good to be realistic with these things. You never know, you might find those that offer slightly lower grades are more suited to you in terms of location, social life etc. and may even be a better fit for you overall than those that want higher grades 🙂

Reply 5

alevelstudent743

OP

3

Original post by itsablandlife

I would take some time to reconsider and perhaps try to look more at universities in the range of your predicted grades just to make sure that you don't avoid disappointment in the future. I'm sure there are some universities who may offer architecture or a similar degree with the grades you are predicted. In my experience, the best way to go about it is to pick 3 universities that are in your predicted grade range, one that is above what you're expected in case you do better than predicted, and then one insurance one that offers lower than your predicted grades. Then, you're pretty much covered no matter what happens, if you get me. I understand you might want to look at some of the top unis or ones that look impressive to you, however it's always good to be realistic with these things. You never know, you might find those that offer slightly lower grades are more suited to you in terms of location, social life etc. and may even be a better fit for you overall than those that want higher grades 🙂

Thank youuu,
I was thinking of applying for UCL which i get a contextual offer for only since my school is a state school. The entry is AAB but the contextual offer is a BBB should i put this as my aspirational or solid??
i’m also applying for university of Manchester for a foundation degree in architecture, the entry requirements are BBB as well. Do you recommend applying for this? since I don’t know much if foundation offers are more competitive or less

(edited 1 year ago)

Reply 6

Artjen

14

"should i put this as my aspirational or solid??"

I think you are misunderstanding how it works, or I am misunderstanding what you mean by "aspirational or solid". You apply to five unis. At the point where you apply, you don't list them in any order, they are just five unis. Then you see if you get any offers. If you do, you accept one as your "firm" and one as "insurance". Usually you pick your firm as a higher offer than the insurance. So IF UCL make you an offer, you can put that as your "firm" and then choose another lower offer for your insurance in case you don't make the grade UCL want. On results day you find out which you are going to.

So it's fine to apply to UCL, if you wanted to you could apply to five "aspirational" unis who ask for grades higher than you are predicted. But that's risky. You might not get any offers. Then you would have to add more unis one by one until you got one offer, so at that point (unless you want to risk ending up in Clearing if you don't make the grades) you would be wise to pick unis you are pretty sure you can make the grades for. The other risk - you get an offer for one of these five universities you aspire to, but don't make the grades and again end up in Clearing on results day because you have no insurance choice.

Better to choose at least one in the first five that you are confident will make you an offer that you can meet the grades for. Then worst case if that's the only one that makes you an offer you can just have that one as your firm choice, but possibly you will have an aspirational firm and a safe insurance.

(edited 1 year ago)

Reply 7

PQ

PS Reviewer

21

The offer rate for architecture at the Bartlett (even after all the scandals about how they’ve abused staff and students for decades https://www.architectsjournal.co.uk/news/bartlett-investigation-damning-report-reveals-toxic-culture-spanning-decades ) is around 5-10%. The vast majority of applicants will be rejected.

It’s worth applying to if you think you will thrive in that sort of environment but a sensible idea to have other choices that aren’t as competitive.

Why the focus on RG universities? They’re not the best in most cases for architecture?

(edited 1 year ago)

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